Grimsby Ice Factory :An Arts Venue of International Significance
Above - the Baltic Gateshead by Sue Stone - already a venue of International Significance
During an interview in the Independent (14th February 2011 http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/features/nicholas-penny-the-rising-cost-of-art-could-create-a-national-divide-2213875.html), Nicholas Penny, of the National Gallery, used Grimsby as an example of the national divide in access to the arts. He said , " it is more difficult for people living in Grimsby to make an outing to see national collections in London that at any time in the last 100 years. I think we are becoming two nations if we don't do something."
Unless he has relatives here, we probably shouldn’t expect that Nicholas Penny is familiar with the problems of North East Lincolnshire. More probably he was following in the footsteps of Wilkie Collins who, wanting to send his fugitive to the remotest part of England, sent her to Grimsby.
Of course, Nicholas Penny’s job is to drum up trade for the National Gallery, so his solution was to subsidise school trips to London. A more ambitious solution would be to establish national collections in the regions.
Of course, we would say that because Great Grimsby Ice Factory Trust aims to transform the Grade II* listed Ice Factory into an arts venue of international significance. Establishing a collection within North East Lincolnshire is vital in creating a sense of artistic ownership which will address Nicholas Penny's fears of a national divide.
There is something reminiscent of an old Hammer Film in the cultural void within Grimsby and Cleethorpes. A community living in the shadow of some ancient darkness. Grimsby’s dogged determination to avoid having an art gallery is summarised in this article by Alf Ludlam on the Civic Society website. It’s almost as if something cold and oppressive snuffed out the spark of Victorian philanthropy which gifted other towns, and lurks still in some hidden crypt ready to venture out and stifle any attempt to make good.
When we talk about an international arts venue in the Ice Factory, we do not mean just a home for the municipal treasures which currently languish in storage. We are talking about something new and radical on the lines of the Baltic (above) in Gateshead, the Turner Gallery in Margate , the Jerwood Project in Hastings, or the Hepworth Gallery in Wakefield.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2011/apr/13/turner-contemporary-gallery-margate-brighter-future
Of course, it’s easy to come up with reasons why all these projects are different from Grimsby. Gateshead is part of a major city complex, Margate may be more run-down, but like Hastings it’s only an hours tootle from London. And Wakefield is so close to Leeds. And of course, it’s almost indecent to think that if you did establish a venue of international significance, you would force people to come to one of the most out-of-the way places in England to enjoy it...But the world has changed since the days of Wilkie Collins. Grimsby is now 20 minutes from an international airport, connecting worldwide through Amsterdam. Ferries run from Rotterdam and Bruges to Hull, and on a national level, the A180 and Grimsby Docks Station are right on the doorstep of the Ice Factory. The Hepworth, Turner and Jerwood galleries all project visitor numbers in the region of 250,000 per annum. As the only Intenrational Art Venue on the east coast between London and Newcastle, we could also expect to attract day visitors from our closest historic tourist destinations, Lincoln and York.